Air Force travels influence painter’s abstract art

After 22 years in the U.S. Air Force, Sonya Young found herself doing something a little different: abstract art.

Her show, "Glimpse," is scheduled to be on display at the Whitney Library, 5175 E. Tropicana Ave., through March 12.

"I didn't even know I could paint when I started," Young said. "It's just something that happened organically."

Young, who lives on the border of Henderson and Whitney, said she began working on small abstract paintings on paper and soon found her self moving on, first to larger paper, then to acrylics on canvas.

"I've been influenced by people and places I've come into contact with traveling abroad in places like Paris and Sri Lanka," Young said. "My life experiences have caused my paintings to expand."

While her work with the Air Force took her places she might not have otherwise gone, it was also a source of stress.

"In the military there is a lot of fear and anxiety abut getting the mission done while protecting people," Young said. "I spent 22 years on duty with that mentality. It takes a toll. I'm enjoying not having that pressure."

Young retired from the Air Force in 2002 but didn't wait until then to begin her art. A few years before her retirement she found herself creating brightly colored abstract works and never felt the desire to create representational works.

"A gallery owner told me the style I work in is Orphism (an offshoot of Cubism)," Young said. "I didn't know it had a name before that."

Two years ago she decided she wanted to take some drawing classes in the University of Nevada, Las Vegas, educational outreach program so she could add representational elements if the mood struck her.

"I wanted to try to start including some realistic interpretation with my spin on it," Young said.

That training manifested itself last year in works that began as portraits and then became something more.

"I added my spin to the portraits," Young said. "I'll sketch out the foundation of a person and put my artistic style on it."

Her instructor, Sean Jones, said Young's work stood out from the start.

"She turned in the exercises I assigned, but she also brought in her own work," Jones said. "I could tell she already knew how to draw, but not just that. She had her own style. It's not often you encounter someone who has such a definite style. It's almost like stained glass."

For Young, creating the art and working in her style is easier than not creating.

"It started out as a hobby, but it's something I felt compelled to get out," Young said. "It's a means of expression that I can't get out any way except doing it."

Her work at the library is built around a recent series of small works. Young said the series title, "Glimpse," refers to the concept that as humans, we are able to see only a glimpse of reality perspective.

"It's about the things we hold on to and our interpretation," Young said. "Life happens, and you put it on canvas somehow."

To see Young's work, visit artbysonyayoung.com.

Contact Sunrise/Whitney View reporter F. Andrew Taylor at ataylor@viewnews.com or 702-380-4532.